Moisture distributing mechanism for printing machines



, Dec. 19, 1939. Hum 2,183,568

MOISTURE DISTRIBUTING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 20, 1937 2 SNBGtS-Sheet l Dec. 19, 1939. w. F. HUCK 8. I

MOISTURE DISTRIBUTING MECHANISM FOR PRINTING MACHINES Filed Aug. 20, 1937 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENTOR.

k Patented Dem 19,1939

MOISTURE fiis'rRIBUTING MECHANISM FOR. ram'rme MACHINES William F. Huck, Richmond Hill, N. Y., ass'ignor,

to R. Hoe & 00., Inc., New York, N. Y., acorporation ofNew York Application August 20, 1931, Serial No. 160,037

11 Claima' (01. 101-147) This'invention relates in general to moisture distributing mechanism for printing machines, and more particularly to a novel moisture distributing or transfer roller designed and adapted to afford a complete control of the liquid to be supplied to a lithographic press. The object of the invention is to provide a moistening roller for a lithographic press with means for measuring and delivering a variable supply of moisture to preselected portions or sections of the said moistening roller, and consequently, to the adjacent coacting rollers and predetermined portions of the form to be inked and moistened. I A further object is to provide an improved method for and means of dampening-the moisture distributing members of a lithographic print-' ing machine by manually controlled means per- ,mitting the accurate measurement and application of variable quantities c.- moisture-to presewill be best understood by reference to the drawings, wherein:

35, Figure 1 is a longitudinal sectional view, partly in elevation, of a moisture distributing roller and coacting control mechanism therefor in accordance with theinvention;

Figure 2 is a fragmentary side elevational view directing regulated quantities to preselected portions of the moisture supplying roller, as seen in the direction of the arrow 2 of Figure 3, with certain parts omitted;

45 Figure 3 is a transverse sectional view of the pump assembly and reservoir taken on line 3-3 of Figure-2, as viewed in the direction .of th arrow;

Figure 4 is a view similar to Figure 3 of the '50, pump assembly and reservoir taken on line 4-4 of Figure 3. showing additional elements of the means provided for regulating and controlling the pressure feed mechanism for the selective and variable disposition of liquid at the points desired;

washer 29 respectively.

of the reservoir and pump assembly employed for,

Figure 5 is.a fragmentary diagrammatic view of certain parts of a lithographic press as equipped with a moisture distributing roll, in accordance with the present invention.

Referring now to the drawings wherein similar '5 characters of reference indicate corresponding parts in the several views of the preferred form of the invention, 1 and '8 designate standards or frame members of a lithograph press, wherein a moistening roll 9 is turnably supported and m coactingly engaged with a chain of distributing, rollers II including a drum i2, the said distributing roller being adapted to transmit moisture to the form cylinder l3.

.The roller 9 comprises a rotatable cylinder it having a plurality of radially positioned ducts i5 communicating with both its interior and outer peripheries for a purpose which will appear hereinafter. The cylinder It is provided at one closed end with an integrally formed shaft l6 rotatably supported on bearings il arranged in the frame member 8, the said shaft is being confined against axial movement relatively to the said frame membar by a collar i8 and the hub of a gear i9 keyed on the shaft. The other end of the cylinder is is formed with an exterior annular groove 2! and a widened portion 22 having an inner annular shoulder 23 against which a bearing 2% is juxtaposed. A thrust, plate or abutment 25 fastened to the frame member l'retains the bearing 2d with-- so in the flared openingat the widened adjacentend of the tube. On the periphery'of the cylinder it,

a layer of felt or other suitable material 26 is fastened in any suitable manner as by the screws 21 and prevented from longitudinal displacement $5 on the said cylinder by the flanged collar 28 and C Within the bore of the rotatable cylinder it,

' a tube 3i is positioned, the said tube being closed at one end by a cap or plug 32 shouldered as at 83 to provide a seat for a bearing 34 arranged within a recess 35 in the closed end of the cylinder M. The other end of the tube 32 has an outwardly projecting annular flange 36 which is fastened within a countersunk portion of the frame member I. The outer cylinder M in this manner is rotatably supported partly on the inner periphery of fixed inner tube 3| and partly on the fiameniember 8. w

The hollow inner tube 3| accommodates a plugo rality of pipes or conduits 31 each of the latter I having a nozzle 38 protruded through a hole in an adjacent portion of the said innertube' 3i and adapted to periodically discharge liquid adjacent the ducts l5 formedinthe outer cylinder l4, asfthe v latter rotates, for the distribution of moisture as will appear hereinafte The pipes 31 are extended out of the inner tube Ii and thence through a casing 39 attached tothe frame membar. I in any suitable manner. The pipes 31 from the casing are led into a reservoir 4| containing the moistening liquid and the power operated mechanism for forcing liquid under pressure through the conduits to the moistening roller 9.

The liquid measuring and feeding apparatus employed for the purpose of this invention and' now to be described, may be, in some respects, of the general form disclosed in Patent No. 1,427,853 to Roesen, dated September .5, 1922. The said apparatus is enclosed in the reservoir 4! which has a hinged top 42 and a bottom suitably secured to the body portion of the reservoir and apertured as at 44 to receive the pipes or conduits 31, which pass through packing nuts 45 threadedly received inenlarged openings communicating with the apertures 44 in the bottom 43 mentioned above. Sufficient conduits are provided so that there is a conduit for each portion or section of the form or forms to be moistened. For the purpose of illustration, 16 conduits are shown, but itis to be understood that as many conduits as may be desired or necessary will be'provided. The conduits which form a part of the liquid measuring and feeding system are adapted to deliver liquid through the holes in the inner tube 3 i whence-the liquid passes through the ducts ii of the cylinder l4 to its felt covering 26 whereby the moisture can be controlled and applied to predetermined portions or sections of the form or forms, as will be more fully described hereinafter.

The pumping mechanism within the reservoir as best shown in Figures 2 and 4,- by means of which theliquid in regulated quantities is forced through the apertures 44 by a series of individual pumps, one for each aperture, includes a frame 46 arranged to have a sidewisesliding movement and provided with suction and discharge ports. 41, adapted to coact with the said apertures. working in the frame and in each of these ports is a valveless plunger pump having a plunger in the form of arod 40-, which intermediate its-ends, is provided with an operating collar 49 fast thereon. These pumps are operated in .any' denected as through an overshown) to an intermediate shaft '6 having a gear sired manner, being given a vertical motion for suction and discharge while the frame 46 is given a sidewise sliding movement alterna ely to bring the ports 41 into communication with the liquid reservoir 4i for suction and with the conduits 31 for discharge. This is effected by providing a second'frame II with apertures or holes 52 within which the upper ends of the plungers move.

" holes, the handle 'H and shaft' fastened there- The frame BI is grooved at 'two points to receive eccentric shafts I3, I4 on the ends of which are mounted eccentric heads ii fastened to thesai'd frame II. The. shafts I3, i4 are driven in any suitable manner which, or example, may'be by means of a shaft of the printing machine conll meshing with a pair of gears 5], 58 fastened to the ends of the shafts I3, 54, mentioned above.

The over-running clutch permits the shaft I6 and parts connected thereto to be manually operated .when' desired for appropriate adjustments. preliminary moistening of the moistening roller and form,-etc., as will appear hereinafter.

Each ,of the'plunger rods is provided with a sadness confined between a stop collar u, fast on the rod and the top of the frame II. The,

' clutch (not bottomv of the reservoir. As the movement of the shafts continues, the frame 5| is lifted and this movement raises the plungers through the spring 60, the extent of the movement depending upon the position of certain stops hereinafter referred to. Further movements of the eccentrics are permitted by the springs 60. As the shafts continue their further movement and the frame 5| starts downward they contact the collars 49 hereinbefore referred to, and as at this time the frame 46 has slid sidewise thereby bringing the discharge ports in line. with the conduits", further movement of the eccentrics causes the plungers to start to move down and force the measured quantity of fluid into the said conduits.

Means are provided whereby the upward or suction producing movement of the plungers may be varied so that the ports 41 will receive on the suction stroke and accurately measure, a variable quantity of fluid. As shown in Patent 'No. 1,427,853 alluded to above, this regulation of the plunger movement may be controlled both at the pumps or at any desired point remote from the machine.

To control the extent of the 'upward move-i ment of the plungers in any and all positions. during the operation of the machine, a plurality of manually regulable stops 63, hereinbefore mentioned, are provided. These stops are each threadedly engaged in a frame 64 mounted on eccentric shafts '65, 66 operatively connected together by the arms 61, 68 and connecting bar 69 and adapted to be positioned in enacting relathe stem of a plunger rod 14 and is confined between an enlarged portion or head ll thereon arid the bottom of the socket. The outer end of the plunger rod T4 is fastened to a sleeve ll. slid- .ably mounted on the exterior periphery of the socket member. The plunger head II has a reduced portion or tip which is received in a series of holes 11 provided in a portion of the frame of the pump assembly.

By drawing back the sleeve 18 and consequently the tip of the plunger from one of the adJacent to may be swung to the right or left, as viewed in Figure 2, and the tip of the said plunger inserted in a different hole, thereby eflecting a general adjustment of the \stop-carrying frame 64 and consequently of the stops .3, with a view to simultaneously regulating the scope of the stroke of the entire series of plungers 48, in order to dispense a greater or less amount of liquid. as desired. In addition to the general adjustment, the stops may be individually controlled by turning same in their respective threaded sockets in the frame 84,- as hereinbefore mentioned, so that a'variable quantity of liquid may be directed to any preselected portion or portions on the periphery of the moistening roller while the machine is in operation, or prior thereto.

Provision is made for manually operating the frames 46 and n are preferably interconnected measuring or pumping devices when desired or I! necessary as, for example, when the form and coacting parts require a preliminary moistening prior to the normal power actuation of the press. In accordance therewith, a removable handle I8 5 'shown in operable position secured to shaft 58' is provided. Prior to normal operating periods of I the machine, the handle is removed from the machine, but when, for examplaa preliminary moistening of the form before actual use is del sired, the handle I8 is placed on the squared outer end of the shaft 56 and the latter rotated manually, thereby turning the shaft 56 and consequently the shafts 53, t and cams 55, whereby the frame 5! and the plungers carried thereon may be reciprocated in order to measure and dispense the desired amount of liquid through the intermediary of the parts mentioned above.

A lid 19 hingedly connected tola wall of the reservoir permits the latter to be conveniently 20 replenished with liquid while an outlet pipe and valve- 8! serve to drain, the reservoir of its contents. I

The function and mode of operation of the device has been in large measure indicated 2 above, but may be summarized as follows:

In accordancewith the usual practice in lithographic printing, greasy' ink is applied to the form on the cylinder l3 by suitable mechanism (not shown) while the application of water or other moistening liquid is made by the apparatus herein disclosed, as follows:

Moistening fluid is placed in the reservoir 4| and the steps 63 individually preadjusted to positions known'to yield a predetermined supply 88 of liquid at a given speed. The stops accomplish this function by limiting the upward throw of the plunger 48 and the consequent capacity of the suction and exhaust ports 41, thereby measuring a predetermined quantity ofliquid,

40 as the frames 46 and 5! oscillate in the well known manner. The said stops are preferably adjusted while the press is running tovary the amount of liquid to be fed to the preselected portion or portions on the form, where the effect desired can be best obtained under actual operating conditions.

The liquid on the down stroke of the plungers at is forced into the adjacent ends of the conduits as these latter align with the ports 41, the

-liquid thence traveling to the nozzles 38 from which it falls upon and enters the adjacent ducts i5 arranged in the rotatable cylinder Id. The ducts then transfer the liquid to the felt 26,

which in turn applies it to the distributing rollv ers ii.

From the above description, it will be seen that a complete control of the supply of moisture is provided by the instant apparatus so that a regulated premeasured supply of liquid can be di- 0' rected to any predetermined portion of the form on the cylinder l3 in order to regulate the flow of liquid to those sections of the form which are thought to require either agreater or less amount of liquid.

g It will be understood that the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential attributes thereof, and it is therefore desired that the present embodiment be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive, and it will be further understood thateach and every-novel featureand combination present in or possessed.

iby themechanismh'erein disclosed forms a part of the invention included inthis'application. 4 I5 What,I claimis; r

1. The combination with the moistening apparatus of a lithographic printing machine, said apparatus having a plurality of manually-adjustable pumps and a conduit for each of said pumps; of a moisture distributing roller, and means con- 5 necting said plurality of conduits with ducts in .the roller, whereby liquid in regulated amounts and from any preselected conduit may be applied to various predetermined peripheral portions of the roller. 10

2. The combination with the moistening apparatus of a lithographic printing machine, said apparatus having a'plurality of conduits and a corresponding plurality of manually-regulable pumps for delivering liquid in regulated quanti- I5 ties through said conduits; of a moisture distributing roller, said roller having ducts communicating with the conduits and adapted to receive and convey .liquid therefrom to the periphery of the roller while rotating. 20

3. The combination with a,lithographic press having a liquid-containing reservoir, a liquid measuring and feeding system within said reservoir for conveying liquid therefrom to points without said reservoir, a moisture distributing 25 roller, and means operatively connecting the roller to the said reservoir and said measuring and feeding system whereby hquid may be applied in regulated and measured amounts to various preselected portions of the roller while $0 rotating.

4. In a moisture distributing apparatus for a lithographic press, a reservoir for liquid, a plurality of pumping means connected to the reservoirfor ejecting the liquid therefrom, a tubular member, a plurality of conduits fixed to the reservoir and to the member and communicating individually with the plurality of pumping means, and a cylinder rotatably mounted on the member and adapted to receive liquid therefrom, M while rotating, said pumping means being individually regulable while the'press is in operation.

5. In a'moisture distributing apparatusfor a lithographic press, the combination with the form cylinder, reservoir for liquid and pumps in 45 said reservoir for ejecting liquid in measured quantities from the reservoir; of a moisture distributing roller, said roller includingan inner stationary tube, conduits secured to the tube and to the reservoir for transferring liquid from the w said reservoir to the outer periphery of the said tube, and a cylindrical member mounted on the tube and havingducts adapted to receive hquid from the said conduits, whereby liquid in measured amounts may be applied to preselected porg5 tions of the form cylinder while rotating.

6. In adevice of the character described, a moisture distributing roller, comprising an inner stationary tube, conduits in said tube adapted to convey liquid to the exterior thereof, bearings 30 arranged adjacent the ends of the said tube and adapted to rotatably maintain same and a cylinder in concentric relation, ducts in said cylinder adapted to receive liquid from said conduits, and.

a moisture-absorbing covering-secured to the as periphery of the cylinder and adapted to receive liquid from the cylinder.

v 7. In a moisture distributing device for a lithographic printing machine, a hollow roller having passages between its inner and outer sur- 70 faces, a reservoir for containing fluid, a plurality of measuring devices operably connected to the reservoir and conduits-leading-from each measuring device and having orifices within the roller spaced longitudinally' thereof, whereby regulation 76 of the flow of each device will correspondingly regulate the amount of moisture delivered to a section of the roller.

8. In a moisture distributing mechanism for a lithographic printing machine, a dampening roller, a reservoir for containing moistening liquid, a

plurality of measuring devices operably connected to the reservoir and driven when the machine is running, each of said devices being ad- 'justable'to measure and deliver a variable quantity of liquid and a conduit leading -from each measuring device to an orifice located within'and adjacent the internal peripheral surface of the roller, each orifice being disposed to supply moisture to a portion of the roller.

9. In a moisture distributing device for a lithographic printing machine, a dampening roller, a reservoir for containing moistening liquid, a plurality of measuring devices operably connected to the reservoir and driven when the machine is .running, a conduit leading from each measuring device to an orifice located adjacent the peripheral sur face of the roller and disposed to supply moisture to a portion of the roller, and means for operating the measuring devices manually to dispense a variable quantity of liquid when the machine is not running.

means.

10. In a moisture distributing apparatus for a lithographic press, a reservoir, a dampening roiler, liquid measuring devices connected to the reservoir, power operated means for actuating said measuring devices, conduits connected to the measuring devices and to the roller and adapted to convey liquid to said roller, and

manually operable means for actuating the measuring devices to dispense a predetermined adapted to convey moisture to said roller, instrum'entalities to selectively and simultaneously regulate the amount of liquid conveyed by'the moistening devices, as desired, and other means for operably actuating the measuring devices to dispense a predetermined variable quantity of liquid independently of the power operated WILLIAM F. HUCK. 

